In the case of piston machines, particularly internal combustion engines equipped with stroke pistons, counterweight arrangements have previously been used for balancing the free inertial and centrifugal forces of the first and second order. Furthermore, arrangements are known which produce at least a partial balance of lateral piston forces for the purpose of eliminating torques around the crankshaft axes. Such torques, which are periodically generated during the operating phases of an engine and cause heavy vibrations, lead to considerable vibrations of the whole body of the engine on its base and from this there are notorious drawbacks such as shaking, formations of cracks, disturbing noises, and the like.
The object of the present invention is to eliminate these disadvantages of known constructions and to provide a balancing arrangement by means of which not only mass forces of the first and second order are completely eliminated, but also damaging effects resulting from lateral piston forces are eliminated.